Purple Noon

Purple Noon with Alain Delon, Maurice Ronet,and Marie Laforêt, is the chilling original to The Talented Mister Ripley. The blindingly beautiful Mediterranean background serves as a stark contrast to the lives of three spoiled and amoral characters on holiday in Italy. This original of The Talented Mr. Ripley is far different from the more recent movie, with Delon being more believable as Tom Ripley, his unbelievably handsome face hiding an evil mind, willing to do whatever it takes to trade places with Philippe Greenleaf.

There are some gratuitous shots here for 1960, and I wasn't real impressed with Maurice Ronet,who seemed too old for the part of Philippe, but on the whole, an enjoyable experience with great plot development and cinematography. The movie pulled you in like a day in the Riviera.

Extremely well done, tightly edited, well acted (by everyone, including the small roles, especially the actor who has to appear dead with long camera shots in a tense scene in the hotel). Delon is perfectly cast, with his calculating cool.

The cinematography is gorgeous, especially the scenes on the yacht---nothing gimmicky, but shot with an expertise that gives true drama to the action. You can feel the waves, the wind, and the sun. The colors are vibrant on the DVD. Though a scene like this in a typical movie today would include a heavy ominous score, the director simply lets the sound of the wind create the tension. The score (by Nina Rota), in fact, is understated, unlike anything today. Even the opening credits have style.

Rene Clement's "Plein soleil" offers a young Alain Delon as Tom Ripley, a character known to more recent audiences as the hero of the Anthony Mingella 1999 "The Talented Mr. Ripley." It is nice to note that both films hold their own well, with the Mingella providing more character and background information than the Clement version.

Delon, who was to become a favorite actor of Visconti and other fine French and Italian directors, renders a skillful performance, along with Maurice Ronet as Phillipe Greenleaf (known as "Dickie" in the later Mingella opus).

Clement keeps the camera focused on the handsome M. Delon (as did Visconti) with stark closeups to show detailed emotional reactions. Delon manages to rise to the challenge in subtle ways, and to project a fully realized character. While Clement fails to provide much background as to why this character acts the way he does, Delon's photogenic countenance somewhat overcomes this void by masking it with personality and charm.

We can be thankful to Martin Scorcese for the fine reprint of this memorable French thriller, known in the UK and USA as "Purple Noon."

Purple Noon wasn't the first film Alain Delon starred in, but it was the one that made him a star. Purple Noon is an autopsy of a near-perfect crime, and a compelling look at the man who commits it. One of Purple Noon's most obvious assets is Delon's acting. Tom is fascinating because Delon makes him so. This isn't a run-of-the-mill villain; he's a complex character with a well thought-out reason for everything he does. In addition to Delon's fine performance, Purple Noon is characterized by expert camerawork and crisp direction. Clement understands how to sustain tension without drawing it out too far. The film is exactly the right length, as are each of the individual scenes. There's nothing so engrossing as watching a truly intelligent thriller, and that makes this film a rare treat. If you enjoy atmospheric high intelligence content and aren't put off by subtitles, then you can't spend a better hour and a half than watching this movie.

Alain Delon and Maurice Ronnet play a fascinating duet of savage cruelty in this tense beautifully crafted Rene Clement thriller from Patricia Highsmith's pen. Anthony Minghella remade it as "The Talented Mr Ripley" with a more polished script and some startling character development but "Purple Noon" has an unbeatable extra gear in Alain Delon's portrayal. He is deadly because anyone would have fallen into his trap. His beauty is inviting and reassuring. We witness his brutal side but don't get to the point of judging him. That is more unique than rare in a movie. Delon's Ripley acts as if there was nothing objectionable about his behavior. A poster boy for amorality. Marie Laforet's Marge is stunningly beautiful but don't get to know her as well as we do Gyneth Paltrow in Minghella's version. If you liked The Talented Mr Ripley" you're going to love "Purple Noon" and vice-versa.